A Look Back at Innovation Daily

Each day, Innovation Daily checks the pulse of global innovation--courtesy of Innovation America. Below, we take a look at a handful of relevant stories compiled from the last week.

Europe Turns to Crowdfunding but Still Obstacles to SurmountWSJ.comA new avenue of financing for small and midsize European companies bypasses the region's banking sector and offers a tantalizing glimpse of a single European market for investment that would integrate the economies of the European Union. For crowdfunding platforms to grow further and become pan-European, though, they will need to overcome numerous obstacles, including a patchwork of national rules, differing payment systems and the risk of fraud, according to a report on the sector to be published on Thursday by the European Commission, the EU's executive arm.

Silicon Valley Is More Than Just Social Media and $4 Toast - Way MoreVentureBeatWhen people speak about Silicon Valley these days, they often mean the entire San Francisco peninsula, from San Jose north to San Francisco. That leads many people to a profound misconception about the state of Silicon Valley: namely, that it is no longer focused on the “hard” technologies: chips, computers, networking — in short, the fundamental, core technologies that gave the region its name. Looking at the San Francisco tech companies that lead the headlines, many people think that “Silicon Valley” — especially its younger segment — has given up on silicon entirely, preferring instead to focus on social media sites, new forms of web publishing, foolish photo-sharing sites, and $4 toast.

The Age of Entrepreneurship AwaitsThe Hindu: Business LineOver the past two decades, a number of trends have begun converging and leading to a critical mass of the elements needed for a breakout in entrepreneurship. First, of course, is the dramatic rise in the number of young people who have earned a good technical or business education. Second is the phenomenal rise in the value of our market capitalisation, which provides the incentive to these young people to stay on in India and look for the payoff right here at home. Since 2007, Indians have founded 8 per cent of all technology and engineering startups in the US, and 14 per cent of all Silicon Valley companies. Obviously we have entrepreneurship in our DNA. It’s time to bring the show back home.

Canada's National Crowdfunding Association Applauds Regulators for Setting Stage for SuccessCanada Newswire GroupOn March 20, 2014, a total of six (6) provincial regulators announced two main proposals for new Crowdfunding prospectus exemptions that would allow early stage companies such as start-ups and SMEs to raise up to 1.5 million of capital online through the issuance of securities. This represents a significant leap forward and positive progress for Crowdfunding advocates such as the National Crowdfunding Association of Canada (NCFA Canada), who has been working diligently with key industry stakeholders, government, regulators, media, eco-system partners and academia, since launching in October 2012, to provide education, research and valuable input into the development of a viable made in Canada framework.

Understanding the Power of Your Human NetworksBothsides of the TableWe all intuitively know how important human connections are in business but for many people it’s like exercise or eating well – one of those things you keep meaning to get around to.The critical skill is not just your immediate network but the network beyond that you can tap into if you’ve earned the right through nurturing your 1-degree relationships.